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Day 33: {now at point "B"}
JULY 7,
Yeah, low mileage and low speed both. Explained by high temps and a relentless west-to-east headwind that was steady but featured gusts that slowed us down to 7 mph or so. To say this riding was unpleasant was an understatement.
The predicted cloudcover and storms, at least by midafternoon, showed no signs of materializing.
We set out early (7 a.m.), hoping to post big miles before the heat of the day hit. Trouble is, the winds had already kicked up and despite cool temps we couldn’t average much better than 12 through the morning. Not helping was the sheer, flat monotony of Western Kansas.
By the time we reached Dighton, Kans., 30 miles west of Ness, the mercury had climbed to 81 and we still had 50 miles to pedal before hitting our supposed destination of Leoti.
By the time we reached Scott City, 24 miles farther, the time and temp sign at the local bank read 94 at 1:45 and the heat showed no signs of retreat. Over lunch at the local Subway we made the obvious choice: punt.
We checked in at a local motel . Then, within an hour, the sky darkened and a heavy thundersrtorm broke out. Our lack of energy, it turned out, saved us from a thorough soaking.
The day’s highlight: Hitting the 2,000-mile mark – over half way – about 13 miles west of Ness City.
The light day will push our arrival in Pueblo back by a day, to Friday, July 11.
